We acquired a very good footballer
Wednesday, July 20, 2022
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The head coach of Shakhtar commented on the signing of Croatian midfielder Neven Djurasek, with whom the specialist had worked earlier, and spoke about the player's strengths
- Today, Shakhtar has signed a deal with Neven Djurasek whom you previously worked with. Tell us about this player.
- He’s a very mature person for his age, emotionally stable, being able to display his best qualities in tough conditions. When the outcome of a match is decided on the football field, he can take the initiative and add some seriousness to the team. Off the pitch, Neven also showed his maturity, calmness and rationality when we were in the country in the early days of Russian aggression against Ukraine. This demonstrates that he can be counted on as a person. As a player, I also know him for a long time, because we spent some time in the reserve team of Dinamo Zagreb. Back then, Neven trained in a blended mode, getting used to the first team, in which the competition is always high and the players are strong. He got game practise in the reserve team and then, after a few loan spells, reached nearly the 100 top-flight appearances, which is an outstanding record. His career in Dnipro-1 was also successful, Neven showed the whole of Ukraine that we have acquired a good player. I believe that Neven is one of the best UPL players at his position.
- Did you influence Djurasek’s choice? If so, what did you talk about with him, how did you convince him to move to Shakhtar?
- His attributes fit my model of play. He is useful in building up attacks, as this player is strong on the ball, he takes positions well and can make decisions quickly and correctly. Neven is also sharp and dynamic off the ball, he can ‘bite’, also Djurasek is a team player. At this Shakhtar, Neven will always be involved in the rotation and bring a lot of benefits.
- In what way will Djurasek be most effective?
- He will be useful in all four aspects of the game: both in transitional phases and in possession or tackling. He has a great vision of the pitch, high intelligence, and works well with the ball. He does not have a big ego, that is, if he doesn’t get into the team squad, he will work the same way as when he gets into the starting XI. We have acquired a very good player who will bring into play a lot of variety because he can play as number eight both on the left and on the right. In the match against Chornomorets, if you remember, I used him as a winger during the last 20 minutes and he earned a penalty. It’s much easier for a coach to work when a footballer has got intelligence.